Surgical binder



y 1969 c. STEINMAN 3,442,270

i SURGICAL BINDER Filed Sept. 25, 1966 United States Patent 3,442,270 SURGICAL BINDER Charles Steinman, 105 Stevens Ave., Mount Vernon, N.Y. 10550 Filed Sept. 23, 1966, Ser. No. 581,581

Int. Cl. A61f 13/14 US. Cl. 128540 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A surgical binder which may be rapidly secured and unsecured to the body of 'a user at substantial angular relationships. The fastening means includes a Velcro hook binder strip on one end portion and elongated nap strips on the other end, the strips extending a substantial distance inwardly from the end to allow joinder of the binder even when the ends are at a significant angular relationship to each other.

This invention relates generally to surgical supports and more particularly to an improved type of post-operative abdominal binder which may be easily applied and removed.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a surgical binder comprising a body portion of stretchable sheet material adjustable within limits to fit varying sizes of body builds, and including a central bodyencircling portion and end portions arranged to overlap when the binder is applied to the body. Secured to the end portions are the complimentary sections of selfsecuring fastening means of the type which grip together when brought into abutment. Specifically, the fastening means is in the nature of fabric strips identified as Velcro. The fastening of the binder ends together at a variety of angles is made possible by so arranging the Velcro fastening means that the strips on one end section of the binder are directed perpendicularly to the strips on the other end section.

After a patient undergoes surgery, particularly of the abdomen or chest, it is customary to apply a binder to support the weakened body areas. Such binder overlies the wound dressings or bandages and may also serve to main tain the dressings in place. At the present time, the socalled Scultitis binder is customarily employed for this purpose, this binder being composed of a plurality of flannel strips which overlap each other at the joined ends of the binder and which make necessary multiple fixation of the individual strips by ties, adhesive tapes, safety pins, or the like.

Among the disadvantages of conventional binders is the necessity of securing the same with ties, adhesive tapes, pins or metal fasteners making the application, removal and adjustment difiicult and time consuming, and rendering it virtually impossible for the patient or wearer to remove or replace the binder by himself. In addition, where pins or metallic fasteners are employed, these must be removed when the patients is X-rayed, so that it becomes necessary -to replace and adjust the binder.

It is the principal object of the present invention to provide an improved postoperative binder which eliminates the disdvantages of those presently in use, and which is made of a stretch material to permit firm application under adjustable tension.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a surgical binder of the type described which includes selfsecuring fastening means which enable the binder to be quickly and easily applied even by unskilled hospital attendants or by the patient himself, and also affords effective gripping action with a wide range of selective adjustment, eliminating the use of ties, tapes or metal fasteners.

A further object of the invention is the provision of See a surgical binder having a body of elastic stretch material sized to be wrapped around the chest or abdomen of a patient and having self-securing fastening means so arranged that the binder may be applied and secured at any selected angle about the body, thereby providing firm application under adjustable tension without restricting body motion or respiration.

A further object of the invention is to provide a surgical binder of the character described which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, yet is durable for repeated use and is capable of maintaining its shape and elficiency for long periods of time and after many launderings.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent during the course of the following specification when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the abdominal portion of a human body showing the surgical binder of the present invention in the process of being applied thereto;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the binder fully'applied and its overlapping ends secured together; and

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the surgical binder shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, with one end thereof folded over to reveal the fastening means on the reverse side, and the central portion cut away for convenience of illustration.

Referring in detail to the drawings, there is shown a preferred embodiment of surgical binder made in accordance with the invention and designated generally by reference numeral 10. The binder 10 is intended to encircle a portion of the human body, particularly the chest region or the abdomen 12 illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The binder 10 comprises a support section 14 in the nature of an elongated sheet of fabric material having stretch characteristics. The fabric support section 14 is preferably woven of elastic threads to provide a longitudinal stretch in the direction indicated by the arrow 16 in FIG. 3, although two-way stretch material may be provided where required. The support section 14 has a central body-encircling portion terminating in opposed end portions 18 and 20, and has an outer surfaces 22 and an inner surface 24. The elongated fabric support section 14'is made of sufiicient width to cover the surgical incision or affected body area, and of a sufficient length to be wrapped about the human body with its end portions 18 and 20 overlapping, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The binder 10 is fastened by self-securing fastening means of the well-known type commercially available under the trademark Velcro. This product is in the form of complementary fabric sections, one of which mounts a plurality of closely spaced rows of small plastic hooks, and the other of which sections carries a nap surface. When these Velcro sections are pressed together in face-to-face relationship, the tiny hooks grip and the nap surface and firmly secure the fabric sections together, until they are released by manually pulling the sections apart in a direction normal to their engaged surfaces.

FIGS. 1 and 3 show a strip 26 of Velcro hook section attached to the end portion 20 of binder 10, and a plurality of strips 28 of Velcro nap section attached to the opposite end portion 18 of binder 10. The strip 26 is of a length substantially equal to the width of the binder support section 14 and comprises an elongated piece of fabric 30 having rows of minute hooks 32 projecting from the outer surface thereof and covering the entire surface. The strip 26 is secured by stitching to the inner surface 24 of the binder end portion 20, extending transversely of the binder and parallel and proximate to the edge of said end portion 20.

The strips 28 are relatively narrow and elongated, each consisting of a fabric base 34 having a dense nap 36 on its outer surface. In the preferred form of the binder 10, four strips 28 are employed, these being secured by stitching to the outer surface 22 of the binder end portion 18. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the nap strips 28 are mounted parallel to each other and spaced from each other, each strip extending longitudinally of the binder from the edge of the end portion 18 for a substantial distance inwardly toward the center of the binder. I

The binder may be applied to the body in the manner shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in which, by way of illustration, it is shown applied to the abdomen 12. The central portion of the support section 14 is centered on the patients back, and the ends are brought around the body to the front thereof with the inner surface 24 engaging the body. The end portion 20 is brought into overlapping relationship with the opposite end portion 18, as shown in FIG. 2, which automatically brings the Velcro hook strip 26 into confronting relationship with the nap strips 28. The end portion 20 is now merely pressed down upon the underlying end portion 18, to cause the Velcro strips 26 and 28 to grip and adhere together. The binder may be drawn as tightly as desired to maintain the patients body under the elastic tension provided by its stretch fabric, and the Velcro strips are effective to hold the binder securely in applied position. Since the Velcro strips are not made of stretch material, there is no stretching present at the overlapping end portions of the binder, and these portions are retained firm at the areas of attachment.

An important feature of the invention resides in the manner of mounting the Velcro strips upon the binder panel so as to enable the binder to be applied in a wide variety of positions to conform to body contours. It was found that if a single nap strip 28 was secured to the binder parallel to the transverse hook strip 26, that is to say, extending along the edge of the opposite end portion 18, effective securement of the Velcro strips could only be obtained when the binder end portions were placed parallel to each other so that the hook strip would register with the nap strip along its entire length. If the binder ends were brought together angularly, as often required by body contour, the Velcro strips would cross each other over a relatively small area, and could not provide the necessary gripping action.

By making the nap strips 28 elongated, and arranging them perpendicularly to the axis of hook strip 26, the binder ends may be applied together angularly, as illustrated in FIG. 2, to conform to body contour, and still be securely fastened. The four strips 28 provide a wide available gripping area for the hook strip 26, no matter at what angle the latter may be disposed. It will be appreciated that the same result may be obtained by utilizing a single wide nap strip having a continuous surface area equal to the overall perimeter of the four combined nap strips 28, but since the Velcro material is expensive, it is economically preferable to employ the four spaced elongated strips 28 in the spaced, parallel arrangement shown.

The arrangement of the Velcro strips is also advantageous in permitting the binder 10 to be adjusted over a relatively wide range of circumference to support a variety of body sizes. To fit all normal body sizes, the binders may be provided in only three ditferent lengths, namely a small size adjustable in circumference from twenty-four to thirty inches, a large size adjustable in a range of from thirty to thirty-six inches, and a large size of from thirtysix to forty-two inches. It will be appreciated that the degree of adjustment is proportional to the lengths of the longitudinally disposed nap strips 28. In all of the aforementioned sizes, the binders are preferably made of a uniform Width of approximately ten inches.

It will thus be appreciated that the binder of the present invention can be applied, removed or replaced with an ease and rapidity heretofore unobtainable. The Velcro fastening means enables the binder to be applied with optimum elastic tension by any hospital attendant and even by the patient himself. The use of pins or other metal fasteners is completely eliminated, permitting X-rays to be taken without removing the binder. Because of its versatility in angular application and its ability to provide firm support under varying pressure without restricting body motion or respiration, the binder 10 may also serve as a chest support for fractured ribs or a post partum abdominal or breast binder.

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described herein, it will be obvious that numerous omissions, changes and additions may be made in such embodiment without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

What I claim'is:

1. A surgical binder for applying tension support to a portion of the human body, comprising an elongated support panel of stretch material having inner and outer surfaces and opposed end portions and of suificient length to encircle a portion of the body with said end portions overlapping, and self-gripping fastening means of the Velcro type mounted on the end portions of said panel, one gripping section of said fastening means being in the form of an elongated strip extending a susbtantial distance inwardly toward the center of said panel and being mounted on the inner surface of one of said panel end portions adjacent to and parallel to the end edge thereof, the complementary gripping section of said fastening means being mounted on the outer surface of the opposite end section of said panel and extending from the end edge thereof inwardly toward the center of said panel for a substantial distance at least several times the width of said elongated strip, said complementary section of said fastening means being in the form of a plurality of elongated narrow strips mounted on said panel in spaced parallel relationship to each other and parallel to the longitudinal axis of said panel and normal to the axis of the single elongated strip of the other gripping section, said binder being adapted to be applied tightly about said human body with one end panel overlapping the other end panel at a plurality of angular relationships and the fastening means gripping sections in confronting and gripping relationship.

2. A surgical binder according to claim 1 in which the support panel is made of fabric having longitudinal stretch properties.

3. A surgical binder according to claim 1 in which each of the narrow strips of the complementary gripping section extends a substantial distance from the end edge of said panel toward the center thereof.

4. A surgical binder according to claim 1 in which the elongated strip of said one gripping section has a plurality of hooks projecting from its exposed surface and covering the entire extent thereof, and said complementary gripping section has an exposed nap surface adapted to be engaged and gripped by said hooks when said binder is in applied condition.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,054,400 9/1962 Lizio l28l7l 3,194,234 7/1965 Duckman et al. l2895 3,256,882 6/1966 Huber 128-169 ADELE M. EAGER, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. l28l57, 558, 578 

